BREAKING NEWS

Tennant visits area on campaign tour

MARTINSBURG – As part of her campaign tour through the Eastern Panhandle, West Virginia Secretary of State Natalie Tennant met with seniors at the Berkeley Senior Center on Wednesday to learn about their concerns and issues.

Calling senior centers the “hub of a community,” Tennant said she chose to visit the senior center because of the number of issues that touch seniors, including Social Security, Medicare and economic issues.

“One woman said ‘why can’t people just get along?’ Well, that’s what we should be doing, that’s how I grew up, and that’s what I’m taking to Washington, D.C. So, it renews my spirit, and it also grounds me (to visit senior centers),” she said.

“This is a race about who is going to represent West Virginia and our values, and where do I get my values? From my dad who’s 85 years old,” Tennant said.

The trip to the senior center, and Berkeley County, was part of Tennant’s 55-county “Talk with Tennant” listening tour to discuss statewide issues and local residents’ concerns. Tennant is running for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by longtime Sen. Jay Rockefeller.

“We appreciate (elected officials) recognizing seniors, because it seems like seniors are the easiest forgotten of the folks who need services in the community, so we appreciate that they’re aware seniors are important, they have needs and that there are some areas where they can help address those needs,” said Linda Holtzapple, executive director for BSS.

Holtzapple said elected officials are always welcome to tour the senior center, although since the organization receives government funding it, cannot allow any campaigning.

While at the senior center, Tennant discussed her duties as secretary of state and spoke with seniors about the issues that concern them.

“It’s not just senior issues that we talked about here, there were economic issues too, because these seniors have family members who know the struggles of working on a minimum wage, they know the struggle of getting the bills paid and unemployment insurance rates,” Tennant said.

“This is just a center where the voice of a county and the view of the people and the values can be seen,” she said.